Mar 25 "Tetelestai"

And my oh my has The Lord taught me a lot since I've last published a post.

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"The Lord gives, and the Lord takes away." - Job 1:21

If you don't know about the story of Job, I encourage you to dig deep and read it because there is so much to learn from him and his journey with his King. Long story short, a lot happened to Job; he was stripped of his wealth, children, servants and health.

Can you imagine?

Losing everything like Job did...

Except one thing... God never left.

Instead of listening to his wife and peers, whom were telling him to confess his sins (basically saying his circumstances were his fault), and to curse God and die, Job remained faithful. God knew Job could handle this, with Himself of course. Although Job never gave up his faith, there were moments where he asked Jesus; "Why me?", "What did I do to get this?"... And that is okay. There have been countless times when I've questioned God's presence and His will for me in my circumstances...

I guarantee you He knows our thought anyways. We are supposed to have a RELATIONSHIP with Jesus. And in relationships, you communicate. In fact, a majority would say that communication is key in any relationship. So asking God questions, and being honest, is what we're supposed to do.

And you know what happened to Job, after he lost nearly everything?

God blessed him because of his faithfulness. He prayed for his family and friends who had lost hope in the Lord, and they were forgiven. It even says that Job was given "twice as much as he had before".

Where I'm going with this is, in the last few months of my life, I have been put through a storm. I'll be honest and say, there were a few times where I was close to losing hope. I was stripped of my mental wellbeing, which affected my quality of life. I was put through a storm, or a valley, just like Job was. I may have lost a lot, but during this time, somehow I always knew Jesus was with me. And to some, that may sound cliché. But, I can truly say that without knowing Jesus, I'm not sure if I'd be here able to write today.

There are 3 places you can be at right now; in a storm, coming out of a storm, or about to enter a storm. During any of these times, when you may be losing faith, I advise you to read the story of Job.

The Lord has taken away a lot these past few months, weeks, but I can truthfully say that He has given me things that are worth much more than what was taken from me. Just as He promised in Job 1:21.

Today is Good Friday. The day that the world became dark for 3 hours, and the day that The Lord Our God sacrificed Himself to be crucified for OUR darkness. 2000 years ago, someone died for US. Someone who had never sinned, who was seemingly perfect. But He loves us SO MUCH that He was beaten, stoned, whipped, and nailed to a cross where His vital organs hung, and His heart literally broke in half. He suffered, He put on a Crown Of Thorns, for us. He died. On this day, 2000 years ago. For us.

And at that moment, when He was overcome with all sins ever to be committed...

He said to His Father; "It is finished." ... "Tetelestai." (In Hebrew)

Tetelestai.

Several days before, He claimed that He was coming back...

He was put in a tomb, with guards surrounding so no one would take His body. And on the third day after His death, the Tomb was empty. He rose. He resurrected from the dead. Just as He said He would.

One of my favorite pastors said this... "The stone wasn't rolled away to let Jesus out, it was rolled away to let us in." Woah. Take a moment to let that sink in.

He was born.

He lived a life of service.

He suffered.

He died.

He rose.

And y'all, He's coming again!!!!

Easter is about SO MUCH MORE than bunnies, candy and pretty Easter clothes...

ON THIS WEEKEND THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO, WE WERE ATONED FOR. BECAUSE OF THIS HISTORY, WE CAN LIVE FOREVER IN HEAVEN WITH OUR SAVIOR & LORD.

But, first we have to let Him in.

"Here I am! I stand at the door of your heart and knock..."

Revelation 3:20

Remember, the tomb was opened not to let Jesus out, but to let US IN!!!